Children
by black-licorice-and-sugar
Summary: What happens when an Omega fails to complete the biological job of an Omega?


It was a scent that burned the nose and would turn away any other Alpha from its source. It was pungent and sharp as though one were directly breathing in a sickly smelling rubbing alcohol.

It was a scent of despair, regret, disappointment, and pain.

A scent of something far lower than an infertile Omega.

Alfred did not dare to approach the curled up Omega, the mass of shaking, pale skin and messy, wet, blonde hair, too quickly, taking small deliberate steps as his senses raged at him to leave the filthy, useless failure. The Alpha in him thought that; Alfred did not.

Forcing step after step, he crouched by the tub Arthur had so carelessly sentenced himself to, the uncomfortable place and position purposely meant to physically and emotionally torment himself when, in this situation, an Omega needed a soft nest and warmth - not a cold, hard tub filled with freezing water up to his cheek.

Not daring to touch him, Alfred sat by his love and resisted the urge to at least cover his nose, knowing that it would shut the other off even more.

At the scent of his Alpha, Arthur found not holding his nose and mouth under the water that much more difficult as it brought on an even worse sensation of pure, unadulterated sadness. The smell of sandalwood and sunshine usually radiating off of his mate replaced with worry and an undertone of anger. Anger at their decision? At him? It didn't matter.

The Omega turned his head further away from his Alpha in a sign of resignation. After this, Alfred could very well choose another mate if he wanted while Arthur no longer had so much as a choice of mating a Beta. It was his fault after all. He knew it wouldn't have worked yet he'd asked anyways; Alfred would never have refused him.

No one could want an Omega with _this_ hanging over his head, in his scent, in his heart.

"Where...is it?" His voice sent a shiver down the Omega's spine, a shiver of dread, but he couldn't refuse the other and a pale, bony hand rose to point at the toilet some feet away, highlighted in the beige bathroom by a trail and halo of blood. It pooled around the white porcelain and leaked down the seat from nearly all sides. Inside the depths of the unflushed mess lay something Alfred feared to see or mention to the other. It smelled of rust and sickness even past the Omega's scent.

He could handle that later. Turning back to Arthur, he made to touch his shoulder but the smaller male curled further in on himself, shuddering from a sob he refused to let out. "Arthur..."

The Omega didn't respond.

"Arthur, please. It was just this once. Maybe we can try again and then...and then we can have the family we both want. But you can't stay like this, you'll make yourself sick." At this, a sliver of emerald green looked up from his self pity at the other before looking back down, the Omega in him not wanting to face the anger and hatred Alfred would never give him. because he loved the smaller male so much. And that made it so much worse.

"If you stay here, your body will get too cold and a second try definitely won't-"

Out came the fiery Omega he had fallen in love with in a burst of emotion, the spicy scent of anger, and water directly in his face. "What won't work, Alfred?! Me? Trying to be a mother even though I'm not the slightest bit cutout to play the role of childbearing Omega because I'm a male with the frame of a fucking board of wood and the immune system of child?! If you want a child so bad-Find! Another! Omega! One better than me because- I! Can't!...do it..." Taking a deep breath of air to continue his rant, instead of yelling he let out a broken cry and sat himself back down from his anger-fueled stance, pressing his head between his knees and letting it happen. "I-I just can't..."

The challenge against his Alpha authority by being yelled at by _his_ own Omega was in the air but Alfred was far too tired to bother addressing it. Instead, with complete disregard for his work attire that he had yet to change out of, he hugged Arthur. The physical contact meant so much more than any words could convey.

And Arthur clung to him. He attempted to apologize for his choice, his mistake, _the_ mistake, and for yelling at the Alpha male in a crying, sputtering mess only to have Alfred gently hush him into quiet hiccups.

"M'kay, hon...let's get you out of here." Most of Arthur's weight went to Alfred, his hands rubbing along the maternally soft skin of an expecting mother - a once expecting mother. The Omega seemed to have lost any weight and then some of what he'd gained from pregnancy and his bones were nearly visible under the sickly, grey pallor of his skin.

In their shared room, complete with a queen-sized bed covered with soft pillows and suede sheets ordered for Arthur's sensitive skin, he sat the man akin to a wet rat on the plush surface of the mattress and grabbed a towel to dry him off. Rather than dress him, he wrapped him up in the black towel and laid him down on the bed. Arthur didn't put up the slightest struggle, docile to whatever his Alpha wanted him to do in order to atone for his miscarriage.

He should have known in the first place; his body was too thin and male Omegas had a smaller chance of carrying a child to term naturally. His chances had been 1 to nothing from the start. Now he would forever have the putrid stink of infertility on him that would lower his chances of ever being mated again, should Alfred leave him. Not that a miscarriage instantly meant Omegas were unfit to have children but Arthur was warned by his doctor that should that happen, he was 20% more likely to damage himself with a child with his coupled low body weight and gender. It was all his fault. All his fault. Alfred deserved better. Alfred-

"Stop that right now." The tone of domineering Alpha shut his thoughts up in their tracks, Alfred having smelled the rising scents of disgust and fear and guessed what they were. Shutting the bathroom door, dimming the lights, he laid down next to his lover and wrapped him in his arms and the comforting warmth of an Alpha in his prime. An Alpha that could very easily have many children had he only the right mate. A good mate. Not Arthur.

Tears ran down his cheeks and stained the shirt Alfred had pressed so carefully that morning when Arthur had kissed him goodbye and Alfred had loving rubbed the slight balloon forming under Arthur's stomach. "I'm so sorry..."

Alfred didn't know what to do. But he still loved him and would love him forever. They could get through this together.

They would be a family no matter what.

* * *

A/N: I made myself sad writing this

Omegaverse!USUK oneshot with nothing but angst to ruin your day

Enjoy!


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